Elevating and sighting apparatus of field-guns.



G. T. BUGKHAM.

ELBVATING AND SIGHTING APPARATUS OP FIELD GUNS. APPLIGATION FILED AUG.6, 1910,

1,013,837, Patented Jan.2,1912.

2 SHEETSSHEET 1.

COLUMBIA PLANDGRAPN c0., WASHINGTON. D, c

G. T. BUGKHAM.

BLEVATING AND SIGHTING APPARATUS OF FIELD GUNS.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 6, 1910.

1,013,837. I Patented Jan. 2, 1912.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT oEEioE.

GEORGE THOMAS BUCKHAM, OF WESTMINSTER, LONDON, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR TOVICKERS SONS & MAXIM LIMITED, OF WESTMINSTER, ENGLAND.

ELEVATING AND SIGHTING APPARATUS 0F FIELD-GUNS.

Original application filed August 20, 1909, Serial No. 513,769.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE THOMAS BUCK- HAM, a subject of the King ofGreat Britain, residing at 82 Victoria street, Vestminster, in thecounty of London, England, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in and Relating to the Elevating and Sighting Apparatus ofField-Guns, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to elevating and sighting apparatus of the kindin which the gun can be elevated together with the sighting apparatus,or independently thereof, a single screw effecting these pointing andranging operations and the hand wheels operating the same being adaptedto be actuated without changing the position of their axes relatively toeach other or to the mounting. The disclosure shown herein forms adivision from original United States application filed August 20, 1909,Serial No. 513,769. According to the present invention the said singleranging and pointing screw is connected to the gun cradle and engageswith a sliding nut forming part of the sighting apparatus, means beingprovided whereby the said screw can be rotated without moving thesliding nut for the ranging operation or can be longitudinally displacedtogether with the said sliding nut for the pointing operation.

In order that my said invention may be clearly understood and readilycarried into effect, I will describe the same more fully with referenceto the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is a vertical section ofa form of the said gear and the single ranging and pointing screw, Fig.1 is a side view of Fig. 1 showing the sighting apparatus in position,and Fig. 2 is a view showing the automatic locking contrivance.

The ranging and pointing is accomplished by means of a single screwcomprising two parts, A, B and I employ a box or casing B which issituated near the lower end of the screw and pivotally connected withthe trail D or other convenient part of the mounting. The said box orcasing contains a rotary nut B engaging with the threads of the screwand a rotary sleeve B which is situated beneath and independent of thesaid nut, and which is connected with the screw by grooves and feathersb 5 but which has Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 2,1912.

Divided and this application filed August 6,

Serial No. 575,870.

no screw-thread connection with the saidv screw. The said nut B and thesleeve B are also provided with bevel teeth Z2 5 engaging respectivelywith bevel pinions e f on the spindles c f of the pointing and ranginghand wheels E and F. When the pointing hand wheel E is operated it givesmotion to the nut B and thus causes the screw to travel up or down inthe same without revolving and when the ranging hand wheel F is operatedit gives motion to the sleeve B and thus causes the screw to travel upor down by revolving in the nut B which is at such time stationary. Theconnection between the screw and the sightbar is effected by means ofthe aforesaid pivoted arm or link C and a sliding nut C engaging withthe screw about midway of its length, the said nut being free to movelongitudinally but prevented from rotating by any suitable means such asfiat faces 0 thereon bearing against corresponding faces a on the cradleA The connection between the screw and the cradle is effected by makingthe upper end of the screw with a cylindrical stem A which fits looselyin an angularly displaceable sleeve A mounted in a socket A carried bythe gun cradle. It will thus be seen that when the said screw is movedlongitudinally without revolving, which occurs when the pointing handwheel E is operated, the said sliding nut C moves with the screw andchanges the elevation of the sight and the gun simultaneously, but thatwhen the screw is revolved by the ranging hand wheel F, it does not movethe sliding nut C and consequently only changes the elevation of thegun.

When the screw is being actuated by the pointing hand wheel E throughthe rotary nut B in the aforesaid box or casing B, it is necessary toprevent the rotary sleeve B from being turned by the screw, and on theother hand when the screw is being actuated by the ranging hand wheel Fthrough the rotary sleeve B in the said box or casing, it is necessaryto prevent the rotary nut B from being turned by the screw. For thispurpose I provide automatic locking contrivances or clamps of the wellknown kind that operate on the free-wheel clutch principles. Fig 2 showsthe said contrivance which is shown as applied to the pointing handwheel E, and comprises eight pointing gear.

spring controlled balls E disposed between cam surfaces E on a cam plateE and the inner circumferential wall of the casing E Disposed betweeneach pair of balls is a pro jection E on the boss of the hand wheel E.When the latter is rotated, each of the projections E engages with oneor other of its cooperating balls and moves it out of contact with thecam surface E The further rotation of the hand wheel E effects therotation of the spindle c (which is suitably connected to the cam plate)and the consequent actuation of the rotary nut B Meanwhile the rotarysleeve B appertaining to the ranging gear remains held stationary by asimilar automatic locking clamp appertaining to the ranging hand wheel Fand its spindle f, owing to the cooperation of each of the pairs ofballs E with the cam surfaces E hen however the ranging hand wheel isactuated, its antomatic locking clamp is released in an analogous mannerto that above stated, and the rotary sleeve B is thus operated, therotary nut B meanwhile remaining held stationary by the locking clampappertaining to the It will be obvious that the said rotary sleeve androtary nut and the contrivances whereby one of these parts is keptstationary when the other is being actuated, could also be employed inconnection .with horizontally or approximately horizontally arrangedpointing and ranging screws. The aforesaid automatic lockingcontrivances or clamps in themselves form no part of my invention and Imake no specific claim thereto.

A range dial I-I may be provided adjacent to the ranging hand wheel Fand be actuated by means of bevel gearing h 71 that receives its motionfrom a worm wheel h driven by a worm f on the ranging spindle f. Therange dial may be connected directly to the worm wheel if desired, ormay be actuated from the sight bar.

What'I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United Statesis 1. In elevating and sighting apparatus for ordnance, the combinationwith the trail of the gun and the ranging and pointing hand wheelsmounted thereon, of a single ranging and pointing screw connected to thegun cradle, a sliding nut mounted on said screw, sighting apparatusconnected with said sliding nut, means for rotating the screw withoutdisplacing the sliding nut for the ranging operation, and means forlongitudinally displacing the said screw together with the sliding nutfor the pointing operation.

2. In elevating and sighting apparatus for ordnance, the combinationwith the trail of the gun and the ranging and pointing hand wheelsmounted thereon, of a single ranging and pointing screw connected to thegun cradle, a sliding nut mounted on said screw, sighting apparatusconnected wit-h said sliding nut, a rotary nut mounted on said screw andconnected with the pointing hand wheel, a rotary sleeve also mounted onsaid screw and actuated by the ranging hand wheel, and means forconnecting the rotary sleeve to the said screw so that the latter can bedisplaced longitudinally therethrough.

3. In elevating and sighting apparatus for ordnance, the combinationwith the trail of the gun and the ranging and pointing hand wheelsmounted thereon, of a single ranging and pointing screw connected to thegun cradle, a sliding nut mounted on said screw, sighting apparatusconnected with said sliding nut, a rotary nut mounted on said screw andconnected with the pointing hand wheel, a rotary sleeve also mounted onsaid screw and actuated by the ranging hand wheel, means for connectingthe rotary sleeve to the said screw so that the latter can be displacedlongitudinally therethrough, means for keeping the said sleevestationary when the rotary nut is being actuated by the pointing handwheel, and means for keeping the rotary nut stationary when the saidsleeve is being actuated by the ranging hand wheel.

In testimony whereof I afiiX my signature in presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE THOMAS BUCKHAM.

lVitnesses:

JOHN II-SHIELDS, ARCHIE l-I. NICHOLS.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. c.

